Research Group Leads
Dr Seb Breitenbach – I am head of the EnMaR (Environmental monitoring and reconstruction) research group. I am a palaeoclimatologist with strong affinity to caves and carbonates. I use carbonate chemistry and stable isotope geochemistry as tools to reconstruct past environmental and climate conditions. Ideally I then use these reconstructions to inform archaeologists, anthropologists and other interested parties and the public about the influence that climate has on society. To this end I follow a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach and work closely with experts from a broad range of research fields. My research is globally spread as I select sites that are best suited for the research question at hand. Among other places, I work in Germany, Siberia, India, New Zealand, and Belize. I am currently establishing clumped isotope thermometry in our new stable isotope laboratory.
Dr Jack Longman – I work in the field of
palaeoclimatology and am most interested in the role volcanoes play, through
the gases and solids they erupt, in controlling the climate of Earth. I
generally either analyse the chemistry of mud or use biogeochemical models to
do this, and have worked on volcanoes of all ages, from modern to the
Precambrian. I am also very interested in geoengineering and the possibility to
mimic some volcanic processes to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Research Group ECR Representatives
Chloe Snowling - Chloe is a postgraduate researcher at Northumbria University studying past climatic and environmental change using stalagmite archives. Her research focuses on reconstructing past monsoon variability across regions of Vietnam using bio- and geochemical proxies from cave deposits. Her broad skill set includes field and lab-based analytical techniques, ranging from cave science and mapping to isotope geochemistry and environmental science. Beyond her academic pursuits, she is an avid cave explorer, completing expeditions around the globe.
Aaditya Kapil - Aaditya is a PhD student at Northumbria University studying glacial geochemistry, and his research focuses on the subglacial environment and quantifying the chemical weathering rates. Aaditya uses cosmogenic isotopes (meteoric 10Be) to study the chemical weathering rates from post-, pre-, and syn-glacial soil, with an aim to understand global carbon flux over the past glacial-interglacial period. His broad training skills include soil science, field and lab-based analytical techniques, biogeochemistry, isotope analysis, earth science processes, and data analysis.
